It’s been a week since we left Canada and what a busy 7 days it’s been. Stuart and I moved into our new flat in Canterbury on Monday and we’ve spent the last few days getting through our move in to-do list and sorting our new home out. Moving out straight after Canada meant that we haven’t really had the chance to ‘get over’ the trip yet and I haven’t had the opportunity to publish any new blog posts about the trip until now. Now that the flat is sorted, the Canada national parks content can begin and I’ll be starting off this series of posts with a recount of all of the ‘authentic Canadian experiences’ we had whilst we were visiting Calgary, Jasper, Banff and Waterton. Whilst we were away, Stuart’s friend Kirsten showed us around Alberta and we also stayed with some of his family friends, so it’s all thanks to them that we got to have such a truly Canadian trip.
1. Pancakes with Maple syrup for breakfast.
Kirsten’s family hosted us for a traditional Canadian breakfast in Calgary before we headed into Banff National Park at the weekend. There were pancakes, bacon, scrambled eggs, tomatoes and maple syrup for us to enjoy and it was so nice getting to chat about life in Canada, over such delicious food. It was by far the best breakfast we had all trip!
2. Camping in bear country.
I’d never camped before we went to Canada and spending two nights in a tent in “bear country” was a totally new experience! Hotels in the area are really expensive, so the locals tend to camp whilst they visit the national parks. By camping, we definitely visited the national parks ‘the Canadian way’ and being told to lock any food in your car because of the risk of bears wandering through the campsite was definitely something that you wouldn’t hear at home.
3. A steak BBQ.
Stuart’s family friends said that we couldn’t visit Canada and not try some of the famous Alberta steaks, so they cooked a steak BBQ for us one night. I don’t actually eat steak, so they cooked me a BBQ chicken breast instead, but I did try a little bit of the steak for the sake of experiencing Canadian cuisine.
4. S’mores around the campfire.
On our final night, we ate at Stuart’s family friends’ house again and enjoyed maple leaf-shaped burgers with salad for our main course and then for dessert we had s’mores around their garden campfire. I’d never made s’mores before the trip, so when they brought out the Hershey’s S’mores Kit, you could say that I was very excited to learn how to make them. We toasted marshmallows on sticks, poured melted chocolate over the marshmallow and graham crackers, and then devoured the classic North American campfire treat.
5. Drinks and sweet treats at Tim Hortons.
Last but not least is Tim Hortons. Tim Hortons is Canada’s favourite affordable coffee shop and we visited the food outlet lots throughout our trip. It offers decent tea, which is always a pleasant surprise when you’re travelling and their pastries are really yummy! The doughnuts at Tim Hortons are really popular, but as somebody who doesn’t like doughnuts, I tried some of their other cakes and sweet treats on offer. Tim Hortons is way cheaper than Costa, Starbucks or Caffè Nero at home, so I’m very glad that the chain is making it’s way across the Atlantic and starting to open branches in the UK!
Staying with locals and experiencing Alberta with them meant that we got to have lots of authentic Canadian experiences.
Do you like to have local or authentic experiences when you travel?
Thanks for reading my blog today.
Love
Kat
xxxx
I loved my night in the Rose and Crown in Banff. It's a fabulous town.